On Tuesday, my class engaged in a plankton lab. We were to compete against each other to create our own plankton that was able to stay in neutral, in between the surface of the water and the bottom of the water. The plankton that sunk the slowest and the plankton that was the most creative would be given a prize from Mrs. Ogo. Down below is the work and the notes my partner, Sabrina, and I have done.
Marine Science: The Great Plankton Race (Student Background)
The sun is the base of all food chains. Phytoplankton use the sun to photosynthesize. As such, these organisms must remain in the "well-lit" or photic zone of the water.
Zooplankton (pronounced "Zoh-playnk-tin") feed off of phytoplankton, so they must also have a way to stay in the photic zone. Being plankton, however, they are not good swimmers; they are "drifters", by name and virtue. To stay in the photic zone, plankton have special adaptations to remain afloat.
Dinoflagellates, a type of phytoplankton, use flagella, or long tails to help stay afloat; ciliates use cilia, or hair-like extensions. Other plankton form chains with each other to gain surface area to stay afloat. Some plankton have vacuoles or other compartments in their bodies to help provide buoyancy. These adaptations give each plankton species an advantage.
Not all plankton float in the water, some are benthic; that is, they are found on the bottom of the lake on rocks and sediment. (An easy to remember the definition of the word 'benthic' is the 'b' found in benthic and bottom.) These plankton do not need to have adaptations to stay afloat as they are neither solitary or have apparatus to move, albeit slowly. Other plankton attach themselves to vegetation in the water. Planktonic, drifing, plankton are the ones who have a vested interest in not sinking. Most zooplankton can move; they undergo a diurnal migration where they migrate to deeper water during the day and return to the top at night (They do this because they escape predators by going to deeper water and return back to the top later on.) It is thought that these zooplankton undertake this energetically costly migration to avoid predation and to conserve energy. However, when they are feeding in the photic zone, they want to be able to stay suspended while expending as little energy as possible, so they can still utilize flotation adaptations.
Zooplankton (pronounced "Zoh-playnk-tin") feed off of phytoplankton, so they must also have a way to stay in the photic zone. Being plankton, however, they are not good swimmers; they are "drifters", by name and virtue. To stay in the photic zone, plankton have special adaptations to remain afloat.
Dinoflagellates, a type of phytoplankton, use flagella, or long tails to help stay afloat; ciliates use cilia, or hair-like extensions. Other plankton form chains with each other to gain surface area to stay afloat. Some plankton have vacuoles or other compartments in their bodies to help provide buoyancy. These adaptations give each plankton species an advantage.
Not all plankton float in the water, some are benthic; that is, they are found on the bottom of the lake on rocks and sediment. (An easy to remember the definition of the word 'benthic' is the 'b' found in benthic and bottom.) These plankton do not need to have adaptations to stay afloat as they are neither solitary or have apparatus to move, albeit slowly. Other plankton attach themselves to vegetation in the water. Planktonic, drifing, plankton are the ones who have a vested interest in not sinking. Most zooplankton can move; they undergo a diurnal migration where they migrate to deeper water during the day and return to the top at night (They do this because they escape predators by going to deeper water and return back to the top later on.) It is thought that these zooplankton undertake this energetically costly migration to avoid predation and to conserve energy. However, when they are feeding in the photic zone, they want to be able to stay suspended while expending as little energy as possible, so they can still utilize flotation adaptations.
Vocabulary
Photic zone: The depth of water in a lake or ocean that is exposed to sufficient sunlight to photosynthesize.
Plankton: Small organisms that float or drift in great numbers in bodies of salt or fresh water; a primary food source for many animals, and consists of bacteria, protozoans, algae, cnidarians, tiny crustaceans such as copepods, and many other organisms.
Benthic: Non-floating plankton; these plankton do not float in the water - instead they live attached to or on top of a solid surface like rocks, plants, sediment, even a single grain of sand; planktonic diatoms are typically pennate, or not round - this is the most common type of diatom to find in alake.
Planktonic: Floating in the water column; planktonic diatoms are typically centric, or round.
Phytoplankton: A type of plankton (drifting marine organism that makes up the foundation of the marine food web) that relies on photosynthesis. This group is comprised mostly of single-celled algae, diatoms, and bacteria.
Zooplankton: A type of plankton that feeds on phytoplankton.
Adaptations: Any physical or behavioral trait that allows an organism to better survive in its environment.
Cilia: Hair-like extensions found on ciliates, a type of plankton, to help them move and catch food.
Flagella: Tails found on dianoflagellates, a type of plankton.
Surface area: The total area of all of the faces and curved surface of a solid object.
Density: Mass per unit of volume; a measure of the relative "heaviness" of objects.
Micron: A unit of length equal to one millionth of a meter. This is the unit used to measure plankton size. Conversion formulas: microns = 1000 x mm; millimeters = microns x 0.001.
Plankton: Small organisms that float or drift in great numbers in bodies of salt or fresh water; a primary food source for many animals, and consists of bacteria, protozoans, algae, cnidarians, tiny crustaceans such as copepods, and many other organisms.
Benthic: Non-floating plankton; these plankton do not float in the water - instead they live attached to or on top of a solid surface like rocks, plants, sediment, even a single grain of sand; planktonic diatoms are typically pennate, or not round - this is the most common type of diatom to find in alake.
Planktonic: Floating in the water column; planktonic diatoms are typically centric, or round.
Phytoplankton: A type of plankton (drifting marine organism that makes up the foundation of the marine food web) that relies on photosynthesis. This group is comprised mostly of single-celled algae, diatoms, and bacteria.
Zooplankton: A type of plankton that feeds on phytoplankton.
Adaptations: Any physical or behavioral trait that allows an organism to better survive in its environment.
Cilia: Hair-like extensions found on ciliates, a type of plankton, to help them move and catch food.
Flagella: Tails found on dianoflagellates, a type of plankton.
Surface area: The total area of all of the faces and curved surface of a solid object.
Density: Mass per unit of volume; a measure of the relative "heaviness" of objects.
Micron: A unit of length equal to one millionth of a meter. This is the unit used to measure plankton size. Conversion formulas: microns = 1000 x mm; millimeters = microns x 0.001.
The Great Plankton Race: Student Pre-Lab Questions
Instructions:
Instructions:
Observe videos/pictures of plankton and Discuss adaptations that they have to help them maintain neutral buoyancy in the water column.
Make a List of Adaptations Below:
Make a List of Adaptations Below:
Questions:
What are Plankton?
They are single-celled phytoplankton.
What do plankton eat? What is the difference between phytoplankton and zooplankton?
Plankton eats chum from the Chum Bucket. (LOL, JK.) Plankton eat vegetation in the water.
Phytoplankton is an organism that makes up the foundation of the marine food web. It relies on photosynthesis. It is comprised of single-celled algae, diatoms, and bacteria. Zooplankton "drifts". They are not good swimmers. Zooplankton feeds off of phytoplankton.
Why are plankton important?
They are important because they are food to the greater marine animals of the sea, for example, the fish. They eat plankton to survive.
Where would they want to hang out?
They would rather hang out at the bottom of the sea than at the top because there are lot of predators that would like to eat them. They to go to the deeper waters to hide from predators and return back to the top when they leave.
Why would a plankton want to stay in the photic zone?
Plankton use the sun to photosynthesize. They use it to create their own food. To do that, they have to stay in the most well-lit area of the ocean.
How would a plankton stay in the photic zone?
They have special adaptations in which they use to float in the photic zone.
Brainstorm ways that plankton could reduce sinking rates.
If we could alter the body of the average plankton and make it lighter and much bigger swim bladder so it might not sink as it would normally do so. If some plankton have wings in the water and they can "fly", then maybe we can evolve the phytoplankton to be more suitable in which they would not have to sink as much as they did... Before we altered its DNA. But these are just my thoughts. c:
Construct a model plankton using materials given to you by your teacher. Your goal is to produce a creature that is close to neutrally buoyant as possible. Your plankton will race with the other plankton your competitors have created. The slowest plankton to sink to the bottom of the tank is the winner. Floating plankton will be disqualified. The model should be roughly the size of a golf ball.
The slowest sinking and the most creative plankton (mothers and fathers, lol) will receive a prize.
They are single-celled phytoplankton.
What do plankton eat? What is the difference between phytoplankton and zooplankton?
Plankton eats chum from the Chum Bucket. (LOL, JK.) Plankton eat vegetation in the water.
Phytoplankton is an organism that makes up the foundation of the marine food web. It relies on photosynthesis. It is comprised of single-celled algae, diatoms, and bacteria. Zooplankton "drifts". They are not good swimmers. Zooplankton feeds off of phytoplankton.
Why are plankton important?
They are important because they are food to the greater marine animals of the sea, for example, the fish. They eat plankton to survive.
Where would they want to hang out?
They would rather hang out at the bottom of the sea than at the top because there are lot of predators that would like to eat them. They to go to the deeper waters to hide from predators and return back to the top when they leave.
Why would a plankton want to stay in the photic zone?
Plankton use the sun to photosynthesize. They use it to create their own food. To do that, they have to stay in the most well-lit area of the ocean.
How would a plankton stay in the photic zone?
They have special adaptations in which they use to float in the photic zone.
Brainstorm ways that plankton could reduce sinking rates.
If we could alter the body of the average plankton and make it lighter and much bigger swim bladder so it might not sink as it would normally do so. If some plankton have wings in the water and they can "fly", then maybe we can evolve the phytoplankton to be more suitable in which they would not have to sink as much as they did... Before we altered its DNA. But these are just my thoughts. c:
Construct a model plankton using materials given to you by your teacher. Your goal is to produce a creature that is close to neutrally buoyant as possible. Your plankton will race with the other plankton your competitors have created. The slowest plankton to sink to the bottom of the tank is the winner. Floating plankton will be disqualified. The model should be roughly the size of a golf ball.
The slowest sinking and the most creative plankton (mothers and fathers, lol) will receive a prize.
Your Plankton Creation!
Name of Plankton: MuFour (Pronounced "Mew-fohr.)
Explanation of Name: I was learning about the "Mu" in my Physics class and I found that it had an interesting name and then I asked my partner about it and she said, "Sure." So we chose "MuFour". The Mu is for what I had learned in my Physics class and the Four is for our plankton's four legs. MuFour! (The picture at the left is "Mu" in its Greek letter-formation-thingie...)
Draw and Label your plankton:
(Lemme add meh pix on when I get homeeeee. Whee.)
Note any special adaptations you included to help your plankton stay in the neutrally buoyant area of the tank: Our plankton has two tails, a swim bladder, (multi-colored body spines) and four legs. The thin blue lines are its veins that connect the body to the swim bladder.
Name of Plankton: MuFour (Pronounced "Mew-fohr.)
Explanation of Name: I was learning about the "Mu" in my Physics class and I found that it had an interesting name and then I asked my partner about it and she said, "Sure." So we chose "MuFour". The Mu is for what I had learned in my Physics class and the Four is for our plankton's four legs. MuFour! (The picture at the left is "Mu" in its Greek letter-formation-thingie...)
Draw and Label your plankton:
(Lemme add meh pix on when I get homeeeee. Whee.)
Note any special adaptations you included to help your plankton stay in the neutrally buoyant area of the tank: Our plankton has two tails, a swim bladder, (multi-colored body spines) and four legs. The thin blue lines are its veins that connect the body to the swim bladder.
Testing Your Plankton:
Directions: Place your plankton into the tank and TIME how long (in seconds) that it takes for your plankton to sink to the bottom of the tank. Try it 3 times (making sure to dry between trials). After your 3 trials, average your floating time and calculate the RATE (distance/time) of your plankton sinking.
(I'm not even sure if my graph is correct or not. Tbh, I just put in random numbers in........)
Directions: Place your plankton into the tank and TIME how long (in seconds) that it takes for your plankton to sink to the bottom of the tank. Try it 3 times (making sure to dry between trials). After your 3 trials, average your floating time and calculate the RATE (distance/time) of your plankton sinking.
(I'm not even sure if my graph is correct or not. Tbh, I just put in random numbers in........)
Your Plankton Results:
1. How long did it take your plankton to sink below the photic zone? (What was the rate?)
We had to try many times, my partner and I, we tried many times to create a model that would sink. Everyone's plankton floated, the first few times. The next few days, we got a model that sank this time and floated the other time.
The rate of the average time we got was 5.3.
2. Was this longer than you expected, shorter than you expected, or about what you expected?
I thought this whole lab would be super easy and fun! But it wasn't. The rate we got was shorter than we had expected. (To be so proud of one thing, and to find that it is not worthy of your pride... *sigh*)
3. How did this compare to the sinking rates of your classmates' plankton creation?
Many of our classmates' plankton had sunk many times, even after modifying it. (I don't know the rates of my classmates, so I can't really compare it at the moment. At the moment.)
4. What other observations did you make about sinking rates of plankton?
I had observed that many of the smallest and skinniest plankton sunk slower than the bigger plankton. I guess it depends on the size and the external adaptations they have.
5. Explain why a plankton would want to go up and down in the water column.
It is caused by diurnal migration. Plankton would go down in the mornings because that is when their predators hunt for food, near the photic zone. They would go up at night, when their predators have left the photic zone. That is called diurnal migration. The reason why plankton do that is because they want to preserve their energy and to keep safe from the other creatures that want to eat them.
6. If plankton cannot swim against the current, how do they move within the water column?
They drift along with the current. The phytoplankton are not good swimmers so they have to find a way to move. Drifting is their way to swim, to move.
7. Describe the features of the winning plankton (slowest sinking rate). How was it different/similar to yours?
The people who won the slowest sinking plankton award were Jack and Lakaya. (Sorry guys, I forgot what yours looked like. o n o ) The people who won the most creative plankton award were Phu and Brandon (I remember theirs like "it was yesterday" o u o )
Jack and Lakaya's plankton had.......... Their plankton had.......... Our plankton did not have.................
Phu and Brandon's plankton looked like it would sink REAL fast. This, of course, were my thoughts when I saw it last Thursday. But they did deserve the most creative prize. Their plankton could have been a new species all together! A plankton species that could be shaped into whatever shape possible! The reason of its existence... would be to hide from their predators! That would've been fascinating all together!! But I'm not here to talk about that.
P & B's plankton was shaped like a boat from "SpongeBob SquarePants". It's probably the reason why Mrs. Ogo chose them as le winners. (I agree, though.)
When Phu had put the boat into the water, it floated, but then he went and got some clay and modified it a bit.. The next thing we know, it began to sink. It sunk really, really slowly though. And yep. I had thought they were gonna win the slowest sinking plankton, but nope. Jack and Lakaya did. (I seriously forgot what theirs looked like... Tartar sauce!!)
8. This race was performed in freshwater. How would the performance of your plankton be different in saltwater? Why?
If we had tested out our plankton in saltwater, our plankton would sink. (Please refer back to the Rainbow Salt Lab.) If we had added a random amount of salt into the tank, our plankton would have sunk. It would sink because of the salt. Saltwater is dense. That would've helped our plankton sink.
9. This race was performed in room temperature water. How would the performance of your plankton be different in very cold water? In very hot water? Why?
If the water in the tank was very cold, .....
10. What factors, other than buoyancy, influence the evolution of plankton's external features?
The swim bladder helped with the buoyancy, the shape and size of the plankton also helped with that.
The spines and legs of our plankton helped it to sink/float.
1. How long did it take your plankton to sink below the photic zone? (What was the rate?)
We had to try many times, my partner and I, we tried many times to create a model that would sink. Everyone's plankton floated, the first few times. The next few days, we got a model that sank this time and floated the other time.
The rate of the average time we got was 5.3.
2. Was this longer than you expected, shorter than you expected, or about what you expected?
I thought this whole lab would be super easy and fun! But it wasn't. The rate we got was shorter than we had expected. (To be so proud of one thing, and to find that it is not worthy of your pride... *sigh*)
3. How did this compare to the sinking rates of your classmates' plankton creation?
Many of our classmates' plankton had sunk many times, even after modifying it. (I don't know the rates of my classmates, so I can't really compare it at the moment. At the moment.)
4. What other observations did you make about sinking rates of plankton?
I had observed that many of the smallest and skinniest plankton sunk slower than the bigger plankton. I guess it depends on the size and the external adaptations they have.
5. Explain why a plankton would want to go up and down in the water column.
It is caused by diurnal migration. Plankton would go down in the mornings because that is when their predators hunt for food, near the photic zone. They would go up at night, when their predators have left the photic zone. That is called diurnal migration. The reason why plankton do that is because they want to preserve their energy and to keep safe from the other creatures that want to eat them.
6. If plankton cannot swim against the current, how do they move within the water column?
They drift along with the current. The phytoplankton are not good swimmers so they have to find a way to move. Drifting is their way to swim, to move.
7. Describe the features of the winning plankton (slowest sinking rate). How was it different/similar to yours?
The people who won the slowest sinking plankton award were Jack and Lakaya. (Sorry guys, I forgot what yours looked like. o n o ) The people who won the most creative plankton award were Phu and Brandon (I remember theirs like "it was yesterday" o u o )
Jack and Lakaya's plankton had.......... Their plankton had.......... Our plankton did not have.................
Phu and Brandon's plankton looked like it would sink REAL fast. This, of course, were my thoughts when I saw it last Thursday. But they did deserve the most creative prize. Their plankton could have been a new species all together! A plankton species that could be shaped into whatever shape possible! The reason of its existence... would be to hide from their predators! That would've been fascinating all together!! But I'm not here to talk about that.
P & B's plankton was shaped like a boat from "SpongeBob SquarePants". It's probably the reason why Mrs. Ogo chose them as le winners. (I agree, though.)
When Phu had put the boat into the water, it floated, but then he went and got some clay and modified it a bit.. The next thing we know, it began to sink. It sunk really, really slowly though. And yep. I had thought they were gonna win the slowest sinking plankton, but nope. Jack and Lakaya did. (I seriously forgot what theirs looked like... Tartar sauce!!)
8. This race was performed in freshwater. How would the performance of your plankton be different in saltwater? Why?
If we had tested out our plankton in saltwater, our plankton would sink. (Please refer back to the Rainbow Salt Lab.) If we had added a random amount of salt into the tank, our plankton would have sunk. It would sink because of the salt. Saltwater is dense. That would've helped our plankton sink.
9. This race was performed in room temperature water. How would the performance of your plankton be different in very cold water? In very hot water? Why?
If the water in the tank was very cold, .....
10. What factors, other than buoyancy, influence the evolution of plankton's external features?
The swim bladder helped with the buoyancy, the shape and size of the plankton also helped with that.
The spines and legs of our plankton helped it to sink/float.
Conclusion: Explain what you learned about plankton and their adaptations, buoyancy and water composition by doing this laboratory activity. Please make sure to include your correct vocabulary and write in complete sentences.
I had learned that the plankton species were the base of the marine animal (food) chain. Without them, how would the other animals survive? We had watched a video about a fish and his point of view about his home and the plankton he ate.
And how the plankton survived. They created their own food by using the sun and to do that, they had to stay in the photic zone, the area with the most amount of sun light.
I learned many things about their ways of survival. I never knew they were so smart, creating a chain/link of plankton to cover as much surface area of the water as they could. They know when to hide when the predators have come out and they know to drift, when they cannot swim.
You never knew Plankton had it so hard... Attempting to steal Mr. Krabs secret formula and failing many, many, many, many times.. while having to hide from predators. *Shakes head* The little dude has it bad.... *Continues shaking head*
I had learned that the plankton species were the base of the marine animal (food) chain. Without them, how would the other animals survive? We had watched a video about a fish and his point of view about his home and the plankton he ate.
And how the plankton survived. They created their own food by using the sun and to do that, they had to stay in the photic zone, the area with the most amount of sun light.
I learned many things about their ways of survival. I never knew they were so smart, creating a chain/link of plankton to cover as much surface area of the water as they could. They know when to hide when the predators have come out and they know to drift, when they cannot swim.
You never knew Plankton had it so hard... Attempting to steal Mr. Krabs secret formula and failing many, many, many, many times.. while having to hide from predators. *Shakes head* The little dude has it bad.... *Continues shaking head*